Ama Dablam, state of the Dablam. The huge high serac known as “the Dablam” has remained active since November 2006, when a huge mass of ice falling from this large serac barrier hit Camp 3 and swept six climbers off the mountain. During the night of November 17, 2008 another part of the Dablam fell off, and the next day an additional huge section dropped, setting off an avalanche that cleaned a section of the normal route, leaving hard blue ice. These falls almost halved the size of the Dablam. In late November the route above Camp 3 was plagued by many more crevasses than in previous years, when it had been covered by snow. The climbing is now more difficult and considerably more time consuming. A Canadian leader of a commercial expedition predicts that the whole Dablam is going to come down. He has been on Ama Dablam twice but now says, “I really don’t want to go back again.”

Ama Dablam, state of the Dablam. The huge high serac known as “the Dablam” has remained active since November 2006, when a huge mass of ice falling from this large serac barrier hit Camp 3 and swept six climbers off the mountain. During the night of November 17, 2008 another part of the Dablam fell off, and the next day an additional huge section dropped, setting off an avalanche that cleaned a section of the normal route, leaving hard blue ice. These falls almost halved the size of the Dablam. In late November the route above Camp 3 was plagued by many more crevasses than in previous years, when it had been covered by snow. The climbing is now more difficult and considerably more time consuming. A Canadian leader of a commercial expedition predicts that the whole Dablam is going to come down. He has been on Ama Dablam twice but now says, “I really don’t want to go back again.”

Elizabeth Hawley, AAC Honorary Member, Nepal

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